Reforming Relationships
by Kyoshi7989
Summary: “Toph Bei Fong, sentenced to a month’s reform on Kyoshi.” Who knew destroying one measly tavern could cause so much trouble? But with a reluctantly engaged Sokka and a determined-to-be-indifferent Toph, something’s reforming here, and it ain’t her.Tokka
1. Chapter 1

**Toph's POV**

I remembered the trial as if it were yesterday.

Of course, that may be because it technically _had _been yesterday.

It was also pretty much the most boring day of my life, filled with sobbing parents, cranky judges, and one retired Fire Nation general that spent the entire time chuckling to himself. Let me tell you, I'm not above throwing out all of his precious _ginseng_ _tea_ first chance I got.

Odds are, though, they'd have declare that a breach of international peace treaties and tossed me in jail for the next twenty years of my life. Not that I'd actually _stay_ in jail, but it was more the fact that I'd be hunted for the rest of my adult life that bugged me.

Then again, I was sure my status would _definitely_ have gotten me into all the top bars, and that was something I was having a bit of trouble with at the moment. Bartenders tended to reject _anyone _widely known of demolishing the tavers and bars of anyone that insulted one of her friends.

Sighing, I leaned my head against the wall of my bedroom. Never had I heard worse words. "Toph Bei Fong, sentenced to a month's reform on Kyoshi Island." Dammit! The only thing that needed _reforming_ was that stupid bar owner. He had me _convicted_ for destroying his stupid _tavern_!

My tournament money could've paid for it and still given me enough to live on for fifty years, but _no_. Apparently I was a "menace to society" and "dangerous to my fellow man." _Woman_. I am a _woman_, or would you like to check?

And the damn place could've been rebuilt in three months, easy.

Besides…I ground my teeth. The guy had it coming to him. Could they _not _see that? Hey, the Avatar in question was too busy screwing Katara to care, but I sure as hell was going to do something when some _loud mouth _went off insulting Aang.

Of course, in the end, I only got sent to _this _sucky place. I mean, what do they _do_? Send out fliers with "Kyoshi: Send All Your Tavern Destroying World Saving Nineteen Year Old Delinquents Here!" Assign a goody goody two shoes leader to their girly dressed warriors that so happens to know me and volunteers the island as a replacement reformatory to _jail_?

...Wait, don't answer that.

"Miss Toph, we're approaching Kyoshi Island."

My doom was approaching, apparently—and quickly.

Scowling, I slammed my fist into the wall of the metal ship. "Wow. That's just the _best _news I've _ever_ heard."

He cowered. Wimp. "The c-captain says will arrive in five minutes," he stuttered.

"Damn." I frowned. "Why couldn't Kyoshi have made this stupid island three hundred miles farther away?"

"I don't know, Ma'am," he whispered. "Maybe…she d-didn't have enough energy...t-to move it any further than she did..."

I snorted. "Huh. You think? Well, I guess I'll just have to check with Twinkle Toes next time I see him," I said scornfully. Now that I though of it, Aang was the whole reason I got into this mess.

The shipmate's voice became a high squeak. "Yes. Well, I'll be going now." The door clicked quietly after him.

As soon as he left, I began tossing my belongings into my bag. My hand closed around a hard piece of earth (well, space earth) and for a split second I froze.

Oh, yeah.

That.

I hadn't worn it for two years, practically, ever since I realized it was too much to wear right out on my sleeve—literally.

It hadn't helped that ever time I put it on, I couldn't help thinking about _him_.

I let out a slow breath. There was one thing I've been forgetting about Kyoshi Island:

Sokka.

He'd just come to stay there a few months ago. I didn't know what that meant, but I knew it couldn't be good—for me, at least. _She_ was probably _thrilled_.

But I wouldn't fall for Sokka—not this time, not _ever_. I was on Kyoshi for a month—if I could stand to stick it out—and that was all. The only person I'd have to deal with was Suki.

No. One. Else.

I was done convincing myself, though. There was nothing more I could do then keep a handle on my own feelings and stay the hell away from Sokka. I wasn't making any promises—I didn't need to.

No matter how I felt about Sokka, it wasn't going to change anything. I was sure that my wayward heart could understand that, at least. It was _always_ better to have never loved at all then to love and be disregarded by the person you cared about most.

The ship knocked against shore with a large jolt. It was time for my punishment to begin.

Slinging my bag over my shoulder, I threw my bedroom door open and marched right to the ramp of the ship. But I didn't use it—I just made my _own_ bridge out of the ship itself.

By the time I reached dirt, sweet dirt again, there was a hole the size of the island right in the hull of the ship.

Ha.

Fix _that_.

Their leader—Oyaji, I surmised from what the judge had told me—walked forward to meet me. "Lady Bei Fong, welcome to Kyoshi."

"You can call me Toph," I corrected, grinning cockily.

"Yes—Toph." Oyaji smiled warmly. He seemed to be happy to be harboring someone as badass as myself, even on criminal charges. "Did you have a good journey?"

I shrugged. "Eh. It kinda sucked."

"Ah." Oyaji raised an eyebrow. "Well, Suki is here to show you to her home. You will stay in the extra bedroom there, as your…parents…showed objections to the barracks. I'm sure we can get you straightened out."

"Parents," I mutter, "as if you can call them that."

They didn't know what to say, so I just stepped in front of Suki, right beside Oyaji, and asked casually, "So, you gotta place to crash?"

She let out a small little laugh. "Sure do, Toph. Come on—Sokka will be thrilled to see you," Suki smiled, beckoning.

I stiffened, then relaxed. I wasn't gonna allow the head moron to get to me, not this time."I'll be gone by the times he knows I'm here," I said at last. "I'm not in the mood for dragging old relationships out of the attic."

Suki paused for the slightest of heartbeats, then shrugged. "Well, I suppose it's been a while...hasn't it?"

"I'll say," I agreed, abruptly sad at the mention of three years we'd spent away and out of touch. I'd always intended to be friends with Sokka, whether he returned my feelings or not. But in the end...it had all been too much.

It didn't help that he was also the most annoying person on the planet.

"So," Suki smiled, beginning to trace the path to her home, "Let's get going, shall we?"

Wonderful. I could hardly wait. (_Not_.)

But we didn't get the chance. Instead, we all heard a sudden commotion and shouting from the water. Everyone around me turned their heads to watch, while I prepared to protect their sorry asses.

A ship was paddling franticly across the water, from the sound of it. With the sound of water being sprayed, I heard a shocked call of "Sokka!" and a few familiar shouts from out in the bay. Something about Unagi, whatever _that _was. Then, right out of thin air, another human body crashed into me. We rolled across the ground, ultimately ending in an..._uncomfortable _position.

"You're a moron," I said flatly, stradling whoever-it-was' lower torso, and I do mean _lower_.

"_Toph_? Is that you?" the man (I was sure of _that_) exclaimed, squinting up at me. I recognized that voice. So it _was _Sokka, after all. "Did you come to murder me for some ridiculous and obscure event that took place more than five years ago, such as using your tooth brush without your permission and accidentally losing it to a possum-chicken in a fight?" Sokka asked suspiciously.

Murdering? That didn't sound like such a bad idea, come to think of it. As for the Incident, well...

Let's just say old grudges die hard. "...Maybe."

"Ah," he said weakly. "I can see you're articulate as always," Sokka sighed a moment later.

"You got that right, Snoozles," I smirked, patting him on the head. "And I can see that you haven't lost your sense of dumbassery, either."

Suki cleared her throat, and I jerked my head the tiniest bit in her direction. Gritting my teeth, I let out a low hiss. I'd forgotten they were here. I wasn't sure if I was mad that they _did _exist, after all, or furious that I wasn't quite following my no-Sokka policy.

"So, Toph...I guess it's nice for you to see Sokka again, isn't it?" Suki offered with a brittle smile. "You two were always such great _friends_." The message was clear: get off of him. With a yawn and a stretch, I rose up off of Sokka.

"Hey, thanks for the rest, Snoozles," I offered casually. "You're very comfortable to sit on."

"It's my pleasure." Sokka furrowed his brow. "I think."

Suki didn't seem very pleased, either, when she quickly stepped forward and reminded Sokka, "Don't you have some training to do?" Hey, I wasn't too happy myself. Or at least I knew I _shouldn't_ be glad to see the chief oaf himself once again after all these years.

Let's review. I'd just been tackled by the man I was (formerly) in love with, ended up straddling the very same guy in front of his near-fiance, and finished with a nice bout of...confusion, pertaining to the heart and mind alike. Verdict?

Just wow.

What a _great _way to start off my month on Kyoshi Island.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Note: At the current time, Toph is **16**years old, Sokka is **19**, and Suki is **18** (I'm not sure of her exact age in the series)._

**Suki's POV (Don't worry, it won't last long ;D)**

I have to admit, this really, really wasn't what I was planning when I asked Sokka to come stay with me a little while ago. I'm a practical girl. Even when I was young, all I wanted to do was fulfill my home's traditions, learn how to apply makeup without the help of an older warrior, and grow up.

That was my least practical goal. With the Fire Nation coming closer and closer to total dominance of the Earth Kingdom, even a tiny, yet ancient band of warriors couldn't go unnoticed for long.

Of course, I got there. Eventually. My next step would be to get married--I wasn't expecting anything like "true love" along the way, but contentment--and raise a family. Then, I'd grow old and instruct the warriors-in-training as my children took their own places on Kyoshi Island.

As you can see, it hasn't turned out quite like that.

For one thing, the growing up part of my plan happened all at once, not little by little as I'd thought. For another, I achieved contentment quicker than I thought I would: Sokka.

And another person I _hadn't _counted on was Toph.

I was happy for her and Sokka's friendship, sure. But something about the way she acted around him made me wonder if it _wasn't _just friendship. I knew Sokka loved me, but I also knew that I was, well, a safe bet, a sure thing.

Sokka wasn't.

He liked challenges, and he liked girls. Never in a million years would Sokka cheat on me. But it's always possible to fall in love with someone else--a step we'd skipped. It had gone from like, to lots of like, to love, with no "falling" in between.

That meant that however happy we were, our "true loves" were still out there. Though being the practical girl I was, I didn't believe in mystical, romantic things like that.

"So, how exactly is this gonna work?" Toph requested after a long and awkward silence. I glanced at her, then back at Oyaji, before giving Toph a small smile I knew she wouldn't see.

"To my house." Sokka and I each shared our respective sides--not to say we didn't _cross over_ every once in a while. We took off, weaving on the paths through the trees. "I'll explain everything about your stay here on the way."

Toph nodded, then inquired--not without a hint of sourness, "So, I guess I'm gonna be doing community service and all of that crap? But you chicks have all of that weaponry here, don't you..." A small smirk flitted across her face. "I'm sure I'll find some time to kick Snoozle's ass."

"Actually, Sokka's a pretty good swordman," I admitted, suddenly reluctant to go on. "He'll..." Biting my lip, I hesitated. It wasn't certain till I said so. But Sokka would be so disappointed...

"He'll be teaching you the ways of the Kyoshi Warrior, our bravery, honor, and respect," I forced out. "It's part of his service to Kyoshi...before he becomes a citizen here and joins our ranks." After all, we had male warriors, too.

Her eyes went wide. "_Sweetness_! You mean I _won't_be working my ass off the whole time here?" Toph exclaimed. An emotion I couldn't name flickered across her face for the merest of seconds. Realization? Pain? I couldn't tell. But I imagined she'd just realized what "joining our ranks" might mean for Sokka.

"Not exactly." I shook my head. "It's actually a bit like the Fire Nation military schools, where they send you to get straightened out. After you learn our ways--and trust me, it won't be easy--you'll spend a two week period traveling around the Earth Kingdom and completely the easier tasks a Kyoshi Warrior would complete."

"Oh." She paused, face falling the tiniest bit. "Wait!" Toph yelped suddenly, horrified, "do I have to wear a _dress_?" Without waiting for me to answer, Toph told Karma to do something very rude, and biologically impossible.

I couldn't help it, I laughed. Toph kept insulting the universe, destiny, and every other mystical being she'd heard of.

I had to admit, I didn't have the best sort of feeling about this whole thing. But, honestly, Toph's sentence couldn't change _too_much on Kyoshi, _or_between myself and Sokka...

Could it?

* * *

**Toph's POV**

A dress.

A _dress_.

Dammit. A freaking _dress_.

Grinding my teeth, I spat out curse after curse at that stupid Karma, Destiny, Fate, and maybe a few at the Avatar, too. _God_. Why did I even bother _defending _Aang from things like that?

After all, the asshole had called him weak for leaving the Loser Lord himself alive, said he'd left all the bending to his teachers, and then made some rude joke about how he was screwing seven different people--not all of them girls--behind Katara's back.

Okay, look: you can question his sanity, his strength, and his bending abilities (hell, I still do). But I'd been around the two lovebirds enough to know that you never, _ever_questioned Aang's devotion and love for Katara.

Suki couldn't help but giggle as my stream of curses became more creative and proficient. Sometime's, that chick really ticked me off. But then again, so did Sokka, and I fell in love with _him_, didn't I? So that meant that Suki...

Ugh. I shuddered, not wanting to even _go_ there.

But see, when your easily irritated, see, people tend to believe that because you're _always_ irritable, and that when something comes up that's really and truly annoyance-worthy for once, it's no big deal. 'Cause your used to it and all.

Nope. Nuh-uh. Way off the mark, guys. We easily irritated people are _actually_ irritated every once in a while.

Suki's house was now coming into view. It was big for one person, but then again, she _was_ the leader of all these warriors-in-dresses. If I was honest with myself, I did respect Suki--a little. She was actually pretty nice, and even though I doubted we'd _ever_ be close, well...

I didn't hate her. Or, that was to say, there were times when I liked her. On the other hand, there were _also_ times when I despised Suki with every fiber of my being.

Either way, this stay with her would be tolerable--nothing more, nothing less. As for the Sokka part of it...it was _that_ portion I wasn't so sure about.

* * *

Soon enough, I was still standing inside Suki's doorway, apprehensive at the feeling of my feet against the wooden floors. After showing me just within the house, Suki had gone to track down Sokka, and left me here just a few moments ago. How was I supposed to "see" where I was going?

"Hey, Toph. So, I guess Suki let you in?"

I froze.

Sokka.

"Eh." I forced myself to shrug. Obviously, my plan was failing miserably so far. I'd fall for Sokka, and then I'd be crushed, demolished by the end of it. It was a cycle doomed to repeat forever...like washing dirty socks. Explaining why I go without them. "It's okay."

"But doesn't the carpet really complement the cieling?" Sokka said excitedly. "I picked the colors out myself," he boasted.

"Wow, you're right, Snoozles," I said in mock astonishment. "It's such a _magnificent _shade of pink, isn't it?"

"Actually, it's more of a pale maroon--oh." Sokka broke off sheepishly. "Sorry. I guess there are some habits you just can't break." True, oh so true. Clearing his throat, he offered, "So, you want the tour?"

I didn't, because it was only starting to dawn on me that Sokka was living here. With Suki. And that meant marriage couldn't be too far off on the horizon, either.

But I just shrugged, and grinned, "Yeah, why not?" So he was living with Suki--a fact that now seemed obvious to me. And probably going to marry her soon. Whatever.

I took comfort in the fact that I could still _pretend_ it didn't hurt.

I latched on to Sokka's arm without thought, and he stiffened. It hadn't mattered three of four years ago, but...I loosened my grip, touching Sokka as little as I could. But I couldn't help the disappointment and slight hurt that laced through me. I was always so tough around everyone else...Sokka was truly the only person to unearth the sensitive Toph, the Toph beneath it all.

"So this is your room..." He through open a door, and I cautiously stepped through...

To find my feet firmly planted on solid ground.

"Dirt, sweet dirt!" I moaned exuberantly, immediately able to see my bed by the window, the dresser pushed against the wall, and the small table at the back of the room. Even five minutes without my precious vibrations had been uncomfortable, and I'd been hating the fact I'd be spending so much of my time within these wooden walls.

"I told them about your feet," Sokka grinned, the tiniest bit smug, but above all happy with my reaction. "Am I good, or am I good?"

I didn't care about retaining my image--I was thrilled. "The best! Snoozles, this is...awesome!" I flopped back on the bed. "Though I'm _still_ not the happiest about all of this," I added a moment later.

"Yes, I _am_quite good, aren't I?" Sokka agreed, before pointing out, "Well, you could be in jail right now, being raped by one of your fellow convicts. Or a fugitive stranded in the desert with nothing but cactus juice to eat or drink."

"Hey, cactus juice is a food staple, too," I pointed out with playful mock, my grin falling through as the majority of my jubilation slipping away all at once. I was enjoying myself...for now.

But I was here and Sokka was here. Either way, things were going to get churned up, and they were gonna get churned up good. That was one mess I didn't want to clean up, especially if it was a one-sided spill.

In all honestly, I'd have picked the desert.

* * *

**A/N: **I UPDATED. I'd Lie's next, then Love Bites. But since Nerf-or-Nothing asked...to see what Toph and Sokka now look like, see "Sokka and Toph" by Palila at devART. I'll put the link in my profile later...

And is it wrong to have FUN writing Suki? Either way, it was...interesting. I think I'm starting to like this chick, 'specially cuz she'd getting a bigger roll in the Tokka-ness of it all then I originally thought she would.


End file.
